1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains generally to the field of electrical control systems and more particularly relates to a remote controlled switch adapted to respond to a cyclic pulse coded control signal adapted to normally control the operation of a first device, such as a hand-held television infrared remote control transmitter.
2. State of the Prior Art
In recent years, remote control devices using infrared rays have become widespread. Due to the advanced signal processing technique and pulse coding of the control signals, these devices can accurately and rapidly remotely control different types and numbers of equipment in the same location without causing them to interfere with each other.
In conventional applications, however, as the number of remotely controlled devices increases, each of them requires a separate remote control signal generator or transmitter because interchangability among the pulse coded transmitter units is not generally available, and consequently control of the multiple devices becomes complicated.
It is therefore desirable to provide a remote controlled switch device which controls power to a particular load or device in response to any one of multiple but similar control signal transmissions, such as infrared transmissions, even though the transmitted signals are generated by different transmitter units, thus reducing the number of transmitter units necessary to control multiple devices.
More particularly, what is desirable is to provide a remote control receiver which is responsive to one or more existing remote control transmitter units which emit pulse coded control signals such as the cyclic pulse sequences characteristics of television infrared remote control transmitters wherein the control signal consists of pulse cycles, each cycle including a repeating custom pulse code and a variable data pulse code.